'WTI Oil', 'BRN Oil', 'VIX (Volatility Index)', soft commodities and interest rates are so-called “Future” products. This means that they expire after a certain period. The product names you see in the app provide the date on which they will expire, for example, 'WTI Oil 15 Sep 22' will expire on 15th September 2022.

  

What happens when the product expires?

 

When the product expires, your position will be automatically closed at the final price (we call this the 'settlement price').

 

To make sure you can trade "Futures" on a continuous basis, we make sure that the new product is always available roughly one week before the one for the current month expires.

  

Is there a specific expiration time for these future products?

 

Yes, for BRN and WTI Oils, it is 18:00 GMT; for the VIX this is 19:45 GMT, for Bund, Bobl and Schatz this is 11:30 GMT; for Long Gilt this is 18:00 GMT; for Cotton this is 19:20 GMT; for US Cocoa and US Coffee this is 18:30 GMT; for UK Coffee this is 17:30 GMT; for UK Cocoa this is 16:55 GMT; for US Sugar this is 18:00 GMT and for UK Sugar this is 17:55 GMT (unless we are dealing with a daylight savings time difference in the US). They are closed at the settlement price shortly after this, or on the first working day after the expiration day which is the case for the VIX.  

  

Be aware: For the time between the product expiring and it is settled you will notice the product is closed and you can't do anything with it, don't panic, this is normal.  As soon as we receive the settlement price we'll settle it for you. 

 

What about the fees for future products?

 

When you open the product from the Market screen or from your Portfolio, you will see a full overview of what fees you will pay. As with other products, the minimum fee for opening and closing your position will be €0.50 and depends on your trade's total value.  

 

One cool thing about "Futures" is that you pay no financing fee when you use the Multiplier for these products.  

 

Good to know:

 

Why are the prices different each month?

 

There is always a bit of a price difference between future products, for example, a WTI Oil that expires in May could be higher than a WTI Oil that expires in April. The reason for this is that future prices take into account expectations of supply and demand, production levels, distribution and storage (among other things). During periods of volatility, this price difference between future products can be more extreme than during periods of stability.